My Family

My friends and some other people

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Jewel has started potty training. At two, she's half as old as 3B was when he began using the potty. She's also learning as she goes...so to speak...which means that she's having accidents along the way. Plenty of accidents. Because 3B made the switch so late, he never had an accident; one day he was wearing diapers and the next day he was using the potty.

OK, in between those days was a battle royale with Mama as she laid down the law: now is the time to use the potty.

Cajoling wasn't really working with him. No idea what got Jewel started on this, but wow...in a matter of months, we might be done with diapers? Really? Six years ago, I would have struggled to change one without covering everyone with poop, probably about as successful as if I'd tried to put gloves on an angry badger.

Now, however, to say that our household might not have diapers in it seems as strange as if you'd said we would no longer have books. Unlike losing our literacy, however, this is a change we're all cheering, quite literally.

Over the weekend, 3B was a good cheerleader for his sister when she was on the potty, clapping and congratulating her. And that probably meant more to her than a week of Mama and I doing the same, since her sun rises and sets on that boy's every move.

They certainly each have their own style, but it's nice to know that they also have each other, which is becoming more clear every day. Some days it seems like all they have is a running battle, but overall, they really do have a good relationship across the years that separate them.

And that makes me happier than I could have imagined possible six years ago.

Papa Bradstein will ride 200 miles across Massachusetts in two days to help fight cancer. Please support his ride.